Dehumidifier for room

[Tracer_Bullet]

I use many power tools from reputed companies and they all sell discontinued models in India. I still buy them because their build quality is extremely good. On the other hand, there are tons of small brands that sell latest Chinese stuff at low prices. Their tools are quite unreliable. I am making the same assumption with Powerpye - that they are using the latest stuff but skimping on the qualit

yeah, seems like it. Because there isn't much competition and maybe demand is less we have worse specs and efficiency.

Its crazy, i was looking at reviews - some very old dehumidifiers are still working for people - made in 1980s and 60s ! They are much less efficient ofc.
Its total regulatory failure to allow this kind of wasteful 'growth', making stuff with planned obsolescence.

This idea came to me pretty late... after 3 years of use. But when I removed the filters and saw its shiny blue evaporator in the brand new condition, I chucked this idea. Cleaning the ACs is a headache already and I didn't want to add another cleaning task to my list.

ok, then ill keep it on too i guess. Carbon filter perhaps can be removed. Although they say 10 year life, i kinda doubt that. From what i have read, carbon filters get used up pretty quickly.
Or is this something different ?

Yes, because then the compressor stops. Rest of the selections (fan speed, swing mode etc) keep working.

ok, good, then i guess ill go with sharp 20L, as anyway it wont be running all the time in my small room. Ill test on whole house too for fun.

 

[chyawanprash]

Its crazy, i was looking at reviews - some very old dehumidifiers are still working for people - made in 1980s and 60s ! They are much less efficient ofc.
Its total regulatory failure to allow this kind of wasteful 'growth', making stuff with planned obsolescence.

True... people were passionate about making reliable products back then.
Refrigerators, dehumidifiers, ACs, etc. are closed-loop systems that can run for decades with minimal maintenance... unless manufacturers design them to fail after a set time.

ok, then ill keep it on too i guess. Carbon filter perhaps can be removed. Although they say 10 year life, i kinda doubt that. From what i have read, carbon filters get used up pretty quickly.
Or is this something different ?

Yes, the carbon filter can be removed. By nature, it keeps on absorbing odors and other pollutants from the air, even when the machine is not running. That's why they suggest to wrap the dehumidifier in plastic bag when planning to not use it for long time. I think there was a note saying that the filter's 10-year life starts from the moment you take it out of its plastic shrink wrap.

This carbon filter is nothing different and is made up of same activated charcoal / carbon beads that you'd find in water purifiers, odor absorbents, water polishers etc.

 

[Tracer_Bullet]

I don't have problem with its operating noise but everytime the compressor stops, it wakes me up. Room suddenly becomes quite. People accustomed to window ACs won't face this problem. Heat is kind of bearable as the dry air makes you more comfortable. It's a trade-off.

So i bought it from amazon and started testing it today.

1) Does this noise look normal to you? It stays like this always when dehumidifier is running. As per manual, loud sound should only be for few mins when compressor starts up.

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2) There were few people complaining about noise in reviews and service guy told some of them that it might be due to transit damage and they had it repaired after which noise from dehumidifer should come down to below 50db or even 35db as per one guy. My unit never goes quieter after it starts.
I called support and hopefully they will fix this, else i will probably replace it. I could get used to it, but still its too loud.
My package did have a cut on the outside and thermocol padding (which was minimal from sharp and nothing extra from amazon) was broken in one place. But did not see any damage on unit.

3) Took about 4 hours to bring humidity down from 93% to 60%. Tank is almost half full. I kinda expected to be quicker as room is only 144 sqfeet vs Upto 550 Sq. Ft from specs.
Also once turned off, humidity rises much quicker vs time to bring it down with windows/door closed.
Hopefully, this is mainly due to moisture absorbed by door/wall etc.

 

[chyawanprash]

1) Does this noise look normal to you? It stays like this always when dehumidifier is running. As per manual, loud sound should only be for few mins when compressor starts up.

Watch 20240928_201124 | Streamable

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No, this doesn't sound normal. Its compressor sounds exactly like any window AC's, but muffled. Try the time-tested slapping method. Sounds like something is loose. Check the protective grill which is placed right above the blower. Try twisting/tilting the unit and see if the noise goes away. I sometimes put a piece of cardboard under one of its wheels when it makes a racket. Mine makes noise due to unleveled floor but it's nowhere close to your unit's.

2) There were few people complaining about noise in reviews and service guy told some of them that it might be due to transit damage and they had it repaired after which noise from dehumidifer should come down to below 50db or even 35db as per one guy. My unit never goes quieter after it starts.
I called support and hopefully they will fix this, else i will probably replace it. I could get used to it, but still its too loud.
My package did have a cut on the outside and thermocol padding (which was minimal from sharp and nothing extra from amazon) was broken in one place. But did not see any damage on unit.

If this loud noise doesn't go away then definitely get a replacement, as this is not the normal compressor noise.

3) Took about 4 hours to bring humidity down from 93% to 60%. Tank is almost half full. I kinda expected to be quicker as room is only 144 sqfeet vs Upto 550 Sq. Ft from specs.
Also once turned off, humidity rises much quicker vs time to bring it down with windows/door closed.
Hopefully, this is mainly due to moisture absorbed by door/wall etc.

Temperature plays a huge role in its efficiency. I use AC/heater to make the dehumidifier work faster.
And yes during this time of the year, dampness in walls etc keeps the humidity high in closed room. You'll notice a difference after using the dehumidifier for few days.

 

[Tracer_Bullet]

If this loud noise doesn't go away then definitely get a replacement, as this is not the normal compressor noise.

Just an update, Sharp service is good and fast.
Problem was apparently just a pipe in contact with body which they say happens in 1/10 cases maybe due to rough shipping.
Got it fixed and now its much quieter and more of a soft hum noise. Happy.

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Also. Just a note. Maybe best not to buy extra 3rd party warranty immediately because they are not returnable and apply only to products bought on amazon.
The one i bought from onsitego can anyway be bought within 9 months of purchase so better to wait atleast until replacement/return window is over as replacement might not be in stock or you may get multiple bad devices and then get refund.

Also sharp guys said that they do repairs after warranty too, so that's good vs powerpi for which i read multiple reviews that they don't provide any support after warranty.

 

[chyawanprash]

Glad to know that the issue got resolved quickly!

Do you regularly buy 3rd party or extended warranties?

Also sharp guys said that they do repairs after warranty too, so that's good vs powerpi for which i read multiple reviews that they don't provide any support after warranty.

This is really good. The machine can serve for a long time then. Usually, it's very hard to maintain ACs after 5 years.

 

[Tracer_Bullet]

Do you regularly buy 3rd party or extended warranties?

No, but usually i try to get more where it makes sense. So 5y on gpu with zotac.
Only warranty i have bought before this was with work laptop where it was very cheap and made sense.

Here i did not think that much. Maybe below were the reasons.
1) Read that powerpi did not provide support after warranty. Did not check for sharp but had that in mind in guess. + only 1y with sharp.
2) AC/fridge do tend to have issues sometimes so assumed it could happen here too.
3) Family has had positive past experience with onsitego with fridge + they seem to have office nearby.

Considering that Sharp should do post warranty repair, maybe its not worth it on average but anyway i am ok with 2y extra assured warranty for this one.

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Now just for fun i am thinking of buying some energy meter plug and start looking at how much this and other things consume in different conditions.

 

[chyawanprash]

3) Family has had positive past experience with onsitego with fridge + they seem to have office nearby.

Yes, I wanted to know about Onsitego experience. I'll try it for my next appliance.

Now just for fun i am thinking of buying some energy meter plug and start looking at how much this and other things consume in different conditions.

Yes do it.

I bought one years ago just for fun. I measured power draw of every appliance in the house, especially in the standby mode. But the novelty factor soon wore off.

 

[Tracer_Bullet]

Yes, I wanted to know about Onsitego experience. I'll try it for my next appliance.

I did not deal with them directly, my father did. There was some problem with the refrigerator and they fixed it at home. He was happy with it and so i went with them for this.

I bought one years ago just for fun. I measured power draw of every appliance in the house, especially in the standby mode. But the novelty factor soon wore off.

yeah, there is no long term usage for it other than debugging issues or for professionals who will probably buy more high end stuff.
But can be useful to see how things work and what is more efficient.

Which product did you buy ? Right now the first thing that shows up in amazon is Wipro smart plugs but one for 10A and another for 16A

 

[chyawanprash]

Smartplugs weren't available back then. I've got MECO PG09H. I just realized that I haven't taken it out of the cupboard in the last 10 years!

 

[Tracer_Bullet]

Bloody hell, stupid thing has started screaming again 1 day after it was fixed. Called service guy, will have to wait till Thursday since tomorrow is holiday.

 

[chyawanprash]

It needs to be slapped hard

BTW, what kind of pipe was it and where it's located? Someday I'll open up my unit and take a look. It sometimes makes weird noise and I tilt it backwards slightly to fix it.

 

[Tracer_Bullet]

It needs to be slapped hard

BTW, what kind of pipe was it and where it's located? Someday I'll open up my unit and take a look. It sometimes makes weird noise and I tilt it backwards slightly to fix it.

Dunno, small pipe with some kind of cloth covering it maybe. Not sure, but i think it was on left when facing it ( so its right). Will confirm when he shows up.

Tilting back does nothing, tilting in above direction actually makes the sound go away. But it comes back when its straightened back.
Its functional, just makes this noise. Service guy said he will do more invasive fix.
If its just pipe touching the body, then this is kinda stupid, why not just give a bit more space.

I could replace this, but there are reviews where people got this problem with multiple units. So better to get him to fix this. We don't have many options in India, its sharp or powerpi.
Overall i was happy with this when it was working. Unless it breaks again after next fix, ill stick to it. Lets see.

For now i am using 70% target so it runs less often. and 70% is still much better than 86%

 

[Tracer_Bullet]

Sharp support is pretty responsive (in Mumbai atleast). I got calls to confirm whether issue was solved and it wasnt.

The guy who fixed it earlier also took call and showed back up on thursday.
This time he opened the whole thing up and then applied zipties and bands to keep things in place.

This whole problem is only because they design things to be mm perfect and give no extra space.
Its maddening how stupid this trend is.

'Repair' worked and so far haven't had the problem again. Ran it for 1.5 days in high mode, he said to replace if issue happens again but it did not.
Now hopefully will not give issue again.